Hi everyone;
I posted this on another forum, and it got a good reception so I was wondering if you lot have any other ideas.
What if Chamberlain (Or even, the League of Nations) realised that Hitler would not keep to his promises at the Munich agreement of 1938, and refused to give Hitler the Sudetenland (thats the area of Czechoslovakia that has a border with Germany, for anybody who doesn't know).
The Czechs at the time had a Powerful army, with The Skoda works and the arms factory at Brno, producing weapons that where as good as or even better than what the Germans had.
Remember, this is 1938, so the Germans would only have PzKpfw Is, IIs, and a handfull of IIIs and IVs. The Czechs had the LT35 and 38s, which would later be put to great use by the Germans. The Sudetenland is also where most of the Czech defences where located.
But, would Hitler even attack Czechoslovakia? Remember, in 1939 when he swallowed up the rest of the country, he threatened the Czechs into surrendering without a fight.
What would Britain and France do If Hitler did invade Czechoslovakia? If they did declare war, what would the do? What about the USSR?
But we have to consider that Britain was in no state for war in 1938. Official estimates said that the country would only be ready for war in 1941. France was content with sitting behind the Maginot line, although it possessed a very powerful army, it's tactics where outdated, very outdated.
There's also the factor about the Air Forces of these different countries. The Luftwaffe was at the top of Hitler's priorities when he came into power, and in 1938 it completely outclassed the RAF, Armee de l'Air and the Soviet air force. These forces where mostly equipped with Biplanes, and their tactics where hopelessly outdated.
So, My final question(s), Would Hitler even consider attacking Czechoslovakia? What would Britain, France and the USSR do if it did? How would the war turn out if it happened a year earlier?
Cheers,
Joe.